2 Enslaving  America  Chapter 4 - Things that haunt us

October 5, 2013

I can’t speak for everyone so this is from a perspective of a single mortal. When I was about five years old, our family lived in a very nice house under Glenn’s Trading Post. I had a recurring dream, or nightmare that centered on trucks bringing big tanks (presumably full of gas) to a location just outside our home and the trading post. A bright light akin to the sun would hover over the trucks and their tanks letting me know that soon there would be a great blast and I believe I thought it was the end of the world. I am not sure how long I had this nightmare but when we moved to Cashion it stopped. I never knew what happened, why I had the dream, whether it was some kind of message; or simply a sour note in my early life.

Later when I was about seven, we had moved back to Concho and lived in the white house on Main Street, and our bedroom was in the northwest bedroom. I would lie awake at night because I didn’t want to wet the bed, which I did regularly. When I went to sleep, I would have a dream about lights coming over the mountain in a sweeping fashion, much like the Aurora Borealis would look like if they were seen in that part of the world. It wasn’t until I was in my forties that I realized the lights came from cars traveling toward Concho on a large curve that brought the same road right back to the front of my house. I still don’t know if I was awake or asleep when I saw these lights. I do know that they came right over the mountain where the Concho cemetery was and I believed at that time that the lights, the cemetery, and spirits somehow were all part of some kind of message.

During the forty years I shared my thoughts in the classroom, I had another semi-comical, semi terrifying recurring dream. I would get to school and find that everything had changed, that I had to teach some classes somewhere, some place. I didn’t have a schedule, had no idea where my classes were, and worse, I had no idea what I was supposed to teach. To my knowledge those circumstances never occurred, I never missed a class, and I always seemed to have plenty to share with my students. I doubt there was ever a real message in these dreams other than that of some ministering angel trying to keep me on my toes.

The best dream I ever had was in my response to searching the heavens for answers concerning my future familial status. I saw in a dream in absolute clarity, my wife and at least two children, Scott and Diane. I was overwhelmed with this vision and understood exactly who and how my life would evolve around. I hadn’t met my bride yet, but it didn’t take a rocket scientist to make me aware of whom it was when I met her. I had thought it was another fine young lady but things turned out exactly as had been planned for me. I have had many dreams, visions, or personal revelations since those days. If I were just a little more patience, a whole lot more contrite, forgiving, and understanding, I would be able to have much more direction and consolation from the heavens. As it is I remain very mortal and very weak. I continually look to you, my friends and family, and our Savior for the guidance, the opportunity, and the resolve to endure to the end.

This week is General Conference week for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I was attempting to go to our Saturday night Priesthood meeting with one, or more of my sons. Kaye, our daughter called to invite me to go with her sons and others in Magna. Just before her call I had become very ill with some kind of stomach bug and told her I didn’t dare get that far from home. Moments later I became involved in a call for help regarding a loved one and his fight with demons. I ended up calling on Jamie Wright, my find son-in-law for assistance in knowing how to find a good conclusion to this potentially tragic situation. Jamie very calmly listened to the facts; then shared how I should best resolve the problem. He was truly a mortal ministering angel.

I have shared these things with each of you in the hope that you will understand how fragile each of us is and how easy it is for any of us to allow the adversary to help us carefully down the road to hell. We can calm our troubled hearts, rid our lives of anger and hate; resolve to be charitable and kind and to love those around us who may have done us harm. Will we always have challenges, concerns, and sheer panic in our lives? Absolutely! Can we find joy and calm through the teachings of our Savior and truly endure to the end? Absolutely!

God bless each of us as we confront our nightmares, our mortality, and our challenges and work to find our way to bless the lives of our families and loved ones.

Duane Jacobs, grandfather, father, brother, uncle, cousin, and friend